The average gas price in Michigan jumped 14 cents a gallon — in one day — from $2.99 a gallon on Monday to $3.13 a gallon on Tuesday, March 3, according to AAA. By Wednesday, the price climbed even higher, rising another 11 cents a gallon to $3.24.
That’s a two-day jump of 25 cents.
The sudden surge, which came a week after President Donald Trump said he saw gas prices in Iowa were as low as $1.85 a gallon, reflects increased oil prices amid a widening conflict in the Middle East, after America attacked Iran.
“Ongoing political events are contributing to higher oil prices,” GasBuddy, which tracks prices at more than 150,000 stations nationwide, said. It forecast on Tuesday that prices could rise as much as 30 cents a gallon in “the next two weeks.”
Rising gasoline prices also prompted Trump on Tuesday to offer a flurry of promises, including U.S. Navy escorts for oil tankers, seemingly to calm some fears and bring down oil prices.
Gasoline prices are tied to the prices of crude oil, which have been trading between $70-$82 a barrel, and oil prices not only affect the United States but countries worldwide and can affect the cost of making and transporting goods.
The lowest-priced gas in Michigan, according to GasBuddy, is now $2.44 a gallon, at 3400 W. Fort St. in Detroit, and there are other low-priced stations, including in the suburbs, Port Huron and Grand Rapids.
One of the problems is that the Middle East conflict is now making it difficult to move oil through the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway through which about one-fifth of the world’s oil flows between Iran and Oman.
It is now effectively closed, with few — if any — ships passing through.
Nations have reserves, but can only go so long without restocking.
Trump, who spoke in the Oval Office alongside German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, acknowledged the higher oil prices, but said he expects them to fall once the Iran conflict ends, which he said could last five weeks — or longer.
“As soon as this ends,” he said, “those prices are going to drop, I believe lower than even before.”
Trump, while on the campaign trail in 2024, vowed to lower gasoline prices to below $2 a gallon. Groups that track gasoline said that didn’t happen, except at a few select stations.
Trump promised not “to start a war,” which he criticized other presidents — including Republicans — for doing, and, in his second inaugural address, he said success would be measured by the wars “that we end” and “most importantly, the wars we never get into.”
The $1.85-a-gallon gas price Trump referred to during his State of the Union was for E85, weeks ago, according to the Des Moines Register. The fuel, which has a higher blend of ethanol and is sold at a lower price than regular gas, can only be used in certain cars.
Trump also said on social media that he ordered the U.S. Development Finance Corp. “to provide, at a very reasonable price, political risk insurance” and guarantees for the financial security “of ALL Maritime Trade, especially Energy, traveling through the Gulf.”
He added the U.S. Navy “will begin escorting tankers through the Strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible,” and “no matter what, the United States will ensure the FREE FLOW of ENERGY to the WORLD.”
Contact Frank Witsil: 313-222-5022 or fwitsil@freepress.com
This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan gas prices up 25 cents a gallon in just 2 days
Reporting by Frank Witsil, Detroit Free Press / Detroit Free Press
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